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Declawing

Declawing & Humane AlternativesBy Franny Syufy

The U.S. Lags BehindThe United States is way behind the rest of the civilized world in its attitude toward declawing of cats. Declawing has been illegal in England for several years. Australia, New Zealand, Germany, Wales, Finland and Brazil are among the many countries that either consider declawing illegal or inhumane, and only allow it under extreme circumstances. More and more cat aficionados, Cat Fancy organizations, and veterinarians in the United States are mounting protests against declawing, calling it inhumane and unnecessary.

Not Medically NecessaryIndeed, in all my research on the Internet, I have yet to see a veterinarian cite a common medical reason for declawing, except to repair a badly done first job, in which the claws have grown back, causing crippling pain to the cat. The closest one might come to a "medical" purpose is to prevent the owner from having the cat euthanized because of destructive scratching. Some veterinarians will reluctantly perform this procedure for that reason alone. I consider this a form of extortion on the owner's part. The Association of Veterinarians for Animal Rights call it "being taken emotional hostage." It's a sad plight that many people will still insist on this surgery, simply because of their cat's "destructive clawing", without even trying the alternatives.

Dr. Nicholas Dodman, author of "The Cat Who Cried for Help," has this to say about declawing: "The inhumanity of the procedure is clearly demonstrated by the nature of cats' recovery from anesthesia following the surgery. Unlike routine recoveries, including recovery from neutering surgeries, which are fairly peaceful, declawing surgery results in cats bouncing off the walls of the recovery cage because of excruciating pain. Cats that are more stoic huddle in the corner of the recovery cage, immobilized in a state of helplessness, presumably by overwhelming pain. Declawing fits the dictionary definition of mutilation to a tee. Words such as deform, disfigure, disjoint, and dismember all apply to this surgery. Partial digital amputation is so horrible that it has been employed for torture of prisoners of war, and in veterinary medicine, the clinical procedure serves as model of severe pain for testing the efficacy of analgesic drugs. Even though analgesic drugs can be used postoperatively, they rarely are, and their effects are incomplete and transient anyway, so sooner or later the pain will emerge."

A cat's claws are vital to its physiology, providing protection, balance, and mobility. Cats who find themselves outdoors without claws are virtually defenseless. To understand exactly what happens during the surgical procedure, let's examine what declawing actually entails.

Declawing is not merely the trimming of the claws. It is the surgical removal of the claws, which are closely adhered to the bone. In order to remove the claw and prevent its regrowth (which sometimes results from incomplete removal), the entire first joint of each of the cat's "toes" is amputated. This procedure is often likened to amputation of all a human's fingers to the first knuckle. You can imagine the subsequent pain. The comparison ends there, however. Cats walk on their "fingers and toes"--we do not (but imagine the pain if you had to, after amputation). Cats depend primarily on their claws for defense-- we do not (but imagine your helplessness if you did, after amputation).

Many cat owners who have had cats declawed in the past now say they would never consider it again, knowing what they now know, and remembering the aftermath of the surgery. Happily, there are other alternatives:

Nail Trimming - Cats cannot do the serious damage to furniture, drapery and rugs, with blunt nails. Trimming is a simple procedure, and if you wait until your cat is sleepy and quiet, and take it one nail at a time, over a period of several days, your cat will soon find out it's not to be feared. Simply lightly squeeze the cat's toe to extend the nail tip, and snip the tip. You can buy inexpensive clippers for this purpose at any pet store. Be careful not to cut into the dark part on the underside of the tip-- this will cause bleeding. If you're trepiditious about doing this yourself, ask your veterinarian to pet groomer to teach you. It's a lot less expensive than declawing, and a lot easier on the cat and your conscience.

Invest in, or build your own, scratching post(s). - Sisal-covered posts are highly recommended. Most cats can be easily trained to use the post instead of your furniture. The post can be "enhanced" with catnip, making it practically irresistible. Posts can be obtained through pet stores, or if you have any carpentry talent at all, you can build your own with a 4'x4' post, a sturdy base, and some sisal to wrap it. Many cats love tree trunks-- nature's own scratching posts-- so you might want to consider something like that, if you have ready access to one. Don't stint on the number of posts. Many cats enjoy having several surfaces and elevations (vertical, horizontal and plane.) Fortunately, one of the most popular surfaces is cardboard, and inexpensive cardboard scratching posts are readily available.

Try Soft Paws - Soft Paws were developed by a veterinarian, and are vinyl nail caps which glue right over a cat's claws. They come in clear or colors, which can look quite fancy, and also are easy to locate if one should come off. The caps grow out with the natural growth of your cats nails, and are said to last four to six weeks, on average. The manufacturer states that Soft Paws and the accompanying glue, are harmless if swallowed. Most people can apply them at home, and the application seems to go more easily when the cat is relaxed and sleepy. Soft Paws may be ordered directly from the manufacturer at their web site, and the cost is reasonable.

There is no valid reason today to even remotely consider declawing as a solution for destructive scratching. Any of these alternatives or a combination of them, can end your furniture-damage problems completely.